1. Who was Rufus W. Griswold, and why would he lie about Poe's death? Why would later biographers accept his lies as if they were true?

2. In what ways does Midnight Dreary follow patterns set in Poe's tales of Auguste Dupin? How does Walsh parallel Dupin? Is he as successful at ferreting out the truth as Dupin is?

3. What does Midnight Dreary reveal about the culture in which Poe lived? What aspects of that culture made it possible for men to supposedly murder Poe and never be brought to trial?

4. What does the behavior of the Royster brothers reveal about their attitudes toward women? How typical were their attitudes for men in Richmond in their day? Was their sister's reaction to their deed how a woman was expected to react?

5. In a comparison with the Quinn and Silverman biographies, do you...